Different types of moveable barrier operators have been sold over the years and these systems have been used to actuate various types of moveable barriers. For example, garage door operators have been used to move garage doors and gate operators have been used to open and close gates.
Such barrier movement operators may include a wall control unit, which is connected to send signals to a head unit thereby causing the head unit to open and close the barrier. In addition, these operators often include a receiver unit at the head unit to receive wireless transmissions from a hand-held code transmitter or from a keypad transmitter, which may be affixed to the outside of the area closed by the barrier or other structure.
Moveable barrier operators are typically actuated when a signaling actuation device (such as a portable transmitter) is positioned to be within the range of the operator. For instance, when a user is attempting to enter their home garage by using a portable transmitter, the user has to first position the portable transmitter within the wireless operating range of the garage door operator to be controlled before the door can be moved and the garage can be entered.
Frequently, however, transmitters have limited ranges due largely to government regulations of their power and thus operators have a very limited reception range. Because of the limited range of operators, problems can occur. For instance, if the user is in a vehicle, the vehicle must be first positioned to be within close proximity of the operator, the transmitter must be actuated, and then the user must wait until the door is opened before the user can enter the garage. The time lag between transmitter actuation and barrier movement may create security and convenience problems as the user has to wait in their vehicle for the door to be opened. In other situations, since users may be unsure as to when the transmitter has come within range of the operator, users often actuate their transmitters many times before the door is opened. This problem leads to user frustration and inefficient system operation as the battery-life of the transmitter is degraded by repeated and useless actuations of the operator.